BBA German Exchange 2023

6.29.23 In the morning we attended school with our exchange partners and then met for homeroom. We spent homeroom painting bags to take home via stencils or by freehand.  Afterward, we embarked on Tübingen by train with quite a few of the German students.  The first thing we did was make our way down to the Neckar River to go punting. We took two long boats down the river with tour guides at the stern of the boat, pushing us along with long wooden poles. It was quite fun and relaxing… until someone started a splash war. The tour guides told us a poem and a little bit about Tübingen College. They even let a few of us try steering the boat. Once we were back on land, we explored the streets of Tübingen.  We left Tübingen and headed to Obertürkheim for a traditional Germany vs USA soccer match. We went into the game with full confidence in our abilities (plus Austin’s flawless game plan) and scored the first goal of the match! We did take second with the final score of 7-3 b...

 6.28.23 On the 28th of June, we went with our group to a bakery, where we were taught by the owner of the bakery how to make pretzels. He taught us what the 5 ingredients (flour, butter, salt, water, and yeast) are that you have to use and also how to know when the dough has been mixed enough (the first sign is if the bowl is clean, the second sign is of the dough is smooth or soft, and if you can stretch the dough and make it translucent it is ready). After preparing the dough we rolled it out and then folded them into the shapes of pretzels. The shape may seem simple enough but it was a little confusing to replicate. The example that the baker gave us was so quick and practiced we all were stunned at how fast he made it. After we had made the shapes of all the pretzels it was time to glaze them in the next ingredient called Lie which is what hardens and turns the outside crust brown. Then we sprinkled salt and cut a little line on the bottom of the pretzel and threw them in the ...

 6.27.23 Once again, our day began with classes. But, instead of homeroom, we were immediately off to the pig museum in Stuttgart. As we walked down the street, the looming figure of a pig train signaled to us that we were in the right place. Inside the building were two floors filled with various pig-related exhibits. It was...definitely an experience, to say the least. After that harrowing experience, we traveled to Killesberg where we walked the local park until we reached the Killesbergturm (Killesberg Tower). Five floors were held up by the tension of cables which balanced on a ball at the center. This explains all the shaking that those who made it to the top of the tower felt while looking out at the beautiful view of Killesburg. We then explored the park where the tower resided and saw various animals, climbed various trees, and even took a group train ride around the park.  As our day came to an end, we returned to our host families for another night in Germany. ...

 6.26.23 On Monday morning we stuck with our partners for Wiggy’s “Sporttag” which was a sports day for kids up to the 9th grade. This was due to the school being used up for the senior’s Abiturs (oral exams). Some of us went to the track to help with the middle school sprints while others lined up on the road to cheer for the swim and run event. In the afternoon we all met up together for the first time since Friday and made our way to the Fernsehturm (TV tower). The Fernsehturm was the first of its kind in Europe. It was built in 1954 so that the people of Stuttgart could receive better signals to watch important events such as Queen Elizabeth’s speeches and soccer games. The tower is about 217 meters tall and has a restaurant built into the top. We were all able to ride up an elevator to the top and get a captivating view of Stuttgart.  When we made our way back down, we stopped at the gift store and had a little fun on the playground. We stopped at Pinguineisdiele on the w...